Improvement in processes of treating vegetable fiber



} Unrrnn STATES PATENT @rtrcs.

JONATHAN KNOWLES, OF TRENTON, NE\V JERSEY.

IMPROVEMENT IN PROCESSES OF TREATING VEGETABLE FIBER.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 10,5]8, dated February14, 1854.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JONATHAN KNOWLES, of Trenton, in the county ofMercer and State of New Jersey, have invented a new and Improved Processof Preparing Flax, Hemp, and

other Similar Vegetable Fibers for Manufacturingjnto Yarn, Clot-h, &c.,of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

Itake rotted or unrotted fia-X, cutinto the'desired length of staple,and boil it iua weak solution of soda or other alkali until the shi eswill readily separate from the fiber by rubbing. I then treat it withchloride of lime and chloride-of soda, or any other preparation of chicrine which is its equivalent for this purpose, and with borax, commonsalt, saltpeter, Glaubers salt, Epsom salt, sal-ammoniac, alum,sulphates of zinc or copper, carbonate of ammonia, or anyother salt theequivalent of these for this purpose. The effect of thus treating thesefibers is simultaneously to: bleach and subdivide each ofthem intonumerous fine filaments,which are deprived of the hardness and rigiditypeculiar to flax and that class of fibers and converted into a statevery closely resembling cotton. Clausseu and others have attempted toattain this object by separate processes of splitting and bleaching; butthey have not been entirely successful, .as the fiber prepared by themis greatly deficient in strength where it possesses the requisitesoftness and fineness, while by my process the fiber is left withunimpaired strength and at the same time is reduced into a fine, soft,and downy state, resembling fine cotton, suitable for carding, spinning,and weaving on such machinery as is now employed for performing theseoperations on cotton and wool.

To apply my process I take any quantity of flax, rotted or unrotted, anddressed or undressed, and cut into the required lengths. I then boil itin an alkaline solution for from three to six hours until the shives andfiber will readily separate, and afterward wash itin water and put itinto a suitable vat, tub, or vessel 5 and for every hundred pounds ofthe fiber I pour into the vessel a quantity of clear liquor sufficientto cover it, composed of water in which ten pounds of chloride of limehave been stirred. The fiber must be agitated and worked about in theliquor so as to become thoroughly saturated as rapidly as possible,which will usually occupy from eight to ten minutes, after which onepound of hoiax dissolved in water must be poured into the tub andagitated so as to mix it thoroughly with the fiber. As soon as theoriginal fibers appear to be completely separated into their elementaryfilaments, which will be in from two to ten minutes, according-t0circumstances, (the exacttime can only be determined by actualinspcction,) they must be atonce removed from the tub,the liquor pressedout of them,and then they must be washed in' pure water to separatethoroughly all adhering chemicals, after which they must be dried, whenthey will be ready to be submitted to the action ofthepicker, cards, orother suitable machinery to render the mass flocculen t, and to separateshives and other foreign matter in the same manner that cotton isprepared for spinning, &c.

I have tried the various salts above mentioned, but borax makesabetterproduct than any of the others, yet I have obtained very goodresults by using the others, and all appear to act in the same mannerupon the fiber, the difference being only in degree. I have notdiscovered the rationale of the action of the salts or of the chlorineupon the fiber, and therefore am unable to give any explanation on thatpoint; but theresult, of which there can be no doubt or uncertainty,shows unmistakably an improvement upon any process heretofore tried forcottonizing flax. and other similar fibers.

I have above directed the fiber to be steeped in the chlorine solutionbefore adding that of the salt,'because I find the operation to be morerapidly performed in this way than when the order of mixture isreversed, yet the result appears to be the same, otherwise than in theconsumption of time, whichever solution be used first. I have also mixedthe saline or splitting and chlorine or bleaching solutions of onehundred pounds of ilax. I may also add that I have found a saturatedsolution of common salt,oneand a halfpound ofGlanbers salt and ofsaltpeter, two pounds of Epsom salt, about two pounds of sul phate ofzinc, one pound of chloride of soda, and three quarters of a pound ofsal'ammoniac to be the proper relative quantities of these severalsubstances to produce the corresponding effect of one pound ofborax; butthe quantity ot'every article used will vary according to variations inits own quality and that of the flax or other fiber being operated on;but these things must, from their nature, be left to the judgment of theoperator.

I have also tried various combinations of the above-mentioned salts,which operated very well, but were not quite as satisfactory as boraxalone.

I have found that by heating or boiling the fiber in any of theforegoing solutions a much better effect is produced than when thesolutionsareused cold. Theprocessis also hastened by heating, andI findthat the agitation produced by admitting steam for heating into thebottom of the vessel is beneficial.

I am aware that Olaussen has proposed to use in his process several ofthe salts I have mentioned, but in a different manner and with adifferent effect; but I make no claim to the use of any substance in anyprocess such as he describes, nor in any other in which the bleachingand splitting of the fiber are effected separately.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,is-

The method herein described of preparing vegetable fiber for picking,carding, spinning, and manufacturing into fabrics by such machinery asis usually employed for performing the corresponding operations onordinary cotton and wool by, first, steeping or boiling it in a solutionof alkali; second, washing it with water; third, steeping itin asolution of chlorine bleaching compound mixed with a solution ofsplitting salts to bleach and split it simultaneously; and, lastly,washingit with water and then drying it, as herein set forth, wherebythe reduction of the fiber to its elementary filaments is expedited andthe expense thereof lessened by dispensing with much of the tediousmanipulation and treatment heretofore practiced, while at the same timethe quality of the product is improved.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name.

J. KNOWLES. Witnesses:

STEPHEN G. MILLER, P. H. WATSON.

